Wellington Training!

There are several ways to do fitness work, I generally choose to do one or two horses at a time, polo players are a little more time efficient, twelve at once!

Wellington, FL is the playground of the rich, famous and elite, horsey and otherwise. To play here you need to be famous to get in, elite to be competitive and rich to afford it! OR you can have a couple of good horses and a couple of good trainers that welcome you in and enthusiastically help horse and rider to become better riders. This week I have taken Mario and Cole, with thanks to their owners, to Wellington to improve our dressage and show jumping. For the show jumping I'm working with grand prix rider (recently turned eventer) Marilyn Little-Meredith, whom I also work with back in MD. With Mario we're working on improving his slight left drift and his rideability between fences. Cole is a different kettle of fish and requires and obviously requires a different ride. He's careful but not to the same point as Mario. Australian dressage rider Nicholas Fyffe is helping me on the flat. I know Nicholas from Australia where he also helped me and he's reminding me of small habits I've allowed to slip since moving to America. For example we've been working on my seat and the effectiveness of aids. He has also been focusing on making a more established half halt and having my horses quicker on my aids. I have one more day here and then I'm really looking forward to getting back to Aiken to focus up on the horses I have left there, particularly Lola, Ti and Charmer, all of who are competing at Sporting Days and Full Gallop. Cole is my only starter this weekend at Pine Top and I look forward to bringing you my results after the training we have been receiving. Mario will next compete at the March Madness in Aiken, SC.